


Joyride

by eveshka



Series: Tales of the Dawn King [54]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-07
Updated: 2018-02-07
Packaged: 2019-03-15 03:00:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13604154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eveshka/pseuds/eveshka





	Joyride

The chocobo wasn’t what bothered him. The track didn’t either. What terrified Ignis was the fact that the twelve-year-old prince had thrown himself onto it and taken off with his usual gusto. Which meant no safety gear, no set idea, and absolutely no introduction to the bird.

It was a bloody wonder that the thing hadn't turned beak on the prince and pecked him to oblivion.

Ignis, his heart in his mouth, rushed for a nearby bird as Noctis vanished around a curve and out of sight, mount warking as they went.

Protocol demanded Ignis slow as he approached the green chocobo, offering it a Gysahl green in desperation to bribe the creature into allowing him to ride. “I am in need of swiftness; are you willing?”

The bird tilted its head, took the green carefully, and Ignis took that as acquiescence. The chocobo didn’t argue when he swung himself up onto its back, and once he was settled, the creature was in motion and the chase was, literally, afoot.

 

The chocobo wasn’t slow. Ignis had to lean forward and wrap his arms around its neck as best as he could, but he couldn't quite reach around it without getting a face full of green feathers. And he needed to see where they were going.

The third time he nearly fell off, he pressed his forehead into the bird’s neck and asked it to just take him to the other bird, _please_. His desperation filled him and he closed his eyes against the tears that prickled behind his glasses.

 

It did not surprise him in the slightest when the bird left the track, and began to climb the rough terrain, weaving in and out of the trees. He could hear the bird calling out to the to the other with a questioning ‘kweh.’

Ignis sat up. Were they lost? Had they lost Noctis? His worst nightmares were coming true.

He had no idea where they were, other than somewhere deep in the Royal Gardens. He’d never been this far before. But when the other chocobo finally responded, his chocobo turned and took them directly to the white bird.

Noctis wasn’t there.

 

Ignis dismounted and approached the white bird, offering it a Gysahl green in turn, and looked around for Noctis. When he didn’t spot the boy, he tried calling out for him. “Noctis? Noct? Where are you?”

He hadn’t expected to hear the voice come from above his head. “I’m up here, Ignis.”

Ignis turned, looked up, and spotted the young prince halfway up a tree. “Noct, please come down. You’ve not yet mastered the art of warping and I don’t wish you to fall and hurt yourself.”

“That’s what potions are for.”

“No, Noct, that is not what potions are for. Nor are the chocobo for random madcap joyrides through Citadel gardens, yet here we are,” Ignis shot back, temper starting to get the better of him. He forced it back down, took a deep breath and tried again. “Noct, please. The chocobos were a treat. Running off like that will have only worried the staff. Let us return and we can have some good-natured racing between us. Winner…” he sighed. “Winner forgoes vegetables for a week.”

“A month.”

“A week. And I’ll work on the pastries.”

Noctis dropped out of the tree. “Promise?”

“Promise.”

With a whoop, Noctis leapt onto his bird and turned it with his bare hands. “Last one back has to sweep the poop!” And with that, he was off.

Ignis sighed, shook his head with a hidden smile and returned to his bird, offering it another green. “Well then, shall we pick up the pace?”

The bird warked, took the green, and when Ignis was settled, it shot off after the other pair, determined not to be outdone.


End file.
